Why would you need KD (who will be DC bound) when we have Bruno? He'll be something else in 2 years (with him being away from 2 years).

“The saving of our world from pending doom will come, not through the complacent adjustment of the conforming majority, but through the creative maladjustment of a nonconforming minority.” - Martin Luther King

You could keep gambling year after year on marque free agents like Dallas and Atlanta has been doing, and lose young players in the process. If your lucky, you get that free agent, otherwise you overpay for 2nd tier free agents.

What really works in this league is getting diamonds in the rough. Finding young players that are in bad situations, that are ready to break out. These playrs can come on the cheap too.

I see 2 or 3 off the top of my head that are ready to break out:
1. Greg Monroe (at center)
2. Harrison Barnes

Harrison Barnes might be interesting to put as our starting SF, and could come cheaper than his value.

Or we can always make a trade with some picks for Kevin Love at the deadline with 2-3 1st round picks + expiring and see how that works for us.

He could work with JV being a decent rim protector, Lowry > Rubio, DD >> Martin, bench is good too.

Realistically, the Raps would need to find a top 10 player in the league to be a true CONTENDER. Although the Raps have a good young core, they are not talented enough as built to go to the finals. I think for awhile they should be content trying to get to the eastern finals. If they want to be true CONTENDERS, the best option would be to blow up the team (if they cannot get a transcendent player via free-agency or trade) but I don't think that the Raps should go in that direction, too much uncertainty. If they continue to draft well and make good decisions an appearance in the Eastern Conference finals is not out of the realm of possibilities.

Realistically, the Raps would need to find a top 10 player in the league to be a true CONTENDER. Although the Raps have a good young core, they are not talented enough as built to go to the finals. I think for awhile they should be content trying to get to the eastern finals. If they want to be true CONTENDERS, the best option would be to blow up the team (if they cannot get a transcendent player via free-agency or trade) but I don't think that the Raps should go in that direction, too much uncertainty. If they continue to draft well and make good decisions an appearance in the Eastern Conference finals is not out of the realm of possibilities.

Yes, i love the idea of Harrison Barns!! One of my favorites already and given the opportunity i totally see him being a great player! The Raps ave zero chance of getting Love, also not sure he would resign even if he came.

The Spurs have 3 HOFers and one of the a top 3 coaches of all time. You cannot say that they don't have top tier talent. And that cannot be your only example. There are no teams that win it all without a truly transcendent player. The past 10 championships have all gone to the Spurs (3), the Mavs (1), the Heat (3), the Celtics (1) and the Lakers (2). These teams all had top ten players and great coaches. Masai knows that to win championships you need top tier talent, the likes of which the Raps currently dont have. (Not saying guys like Lowery and DD aren'y good players, saying that they are not top 10-15 players)

I'm not saying adding a player via free agency isn't a good idea, I'm saying it is a move you can't rely on. Did you see what happened to Houston this offseason? Or the list of good players they let go because of their obssession of acquiring talent?

You can't build a team like the Heat. You can buy it, but there is absolutely no chance of this happening in Toronto.

and you're saying relying on JV is going to be the key to us contending???

28 teams don't have LeBron or Durant. Neither teams that reached the finals have either now. OKC struggled in the playoffs and wasn't a lock to reach the WCF. League parity is a definite factor in determining a teams chances at a title.

The Spurs have 3 HOFers and one of the a top 3 coaches of all time. You cannot say that they don't have top tier talent.

I disagree.
- at PG Chris Paul is a top 10 player in the league - Tony Parker is not (and Lowry beats him)
- at PF Kevin Love and Anthony Davis are top 10 players in the league - Tim Duncan was (and PP and Amir are close to Timmy now)
- the only one who could be a top 10 player is Kawhi Leonard at SF - and Demar Derozan was chosen as an allstar, not Kawhi

And the point stands that unless you believe Kawhi Leonard is a top 10 player in the league, the Spurs don't have a superstar. What they do have is solid talent at every position, great team play and coaching, and longevity together as a team. We can try to emulate that.

I disagree.
- at PG Chris Paul is a top 10 player in the league - Tony Parker is not (and Lowry beats him)
- at PF Kevin Love and Anthony Davis are top 10 players in the league - Tim Duncan was (and PP and Amir are close to Timmy now)

I disagree.
- at PG Chris Paul is a top 10 player in the league - Tony Parker is not (and Lowry beats him)
- at PF Kevin Love and Anthony Davis are top 10 players in the league - Tim Duncan was (and PP and Amir are close to Timmy now)
- the only one who could be a top 10 player is Kawhi Leonard at SF - and Demar Derozan was chosen as an allstar, not Kawhi

And the point stands that unless you believe Kawhi Leonard is a top 10 player in the league, the Spurs don't have a superstar. What they do have is solid talent at every position, great team play and coaching, and longevity together as a team. We can try to emulate that.

....... Please tell me you do not think that the Raps are as good/better than the Spurs. Even if you think that the Spurs are full of scrubs, other nine teams on my original post all had at least one of the top players in the league. I like the Raps but in no way can you say they are as good as the Spurs. The Raps didn't get 50 wins and didn't make it out of an hilariously weak eastern conference, while the Spurs won the loaded western conference and the title, they are miles apart. (I still think the Raps had a good season but not as good as the Spurs)